GRAND RAPIDS, MI — West Michigan lawmakers and their staff offered critical takes on news beginning to trickle out of Washington, D.C., that the White House and Senate Republicans have reached a deal on tax rates to help avoid the so-called fiscal cliff.

Contentious negotiations to avert the cliff by a midnight deadline have been ongoing, but news outlets have begun reporting a tentative deal could be on deck that would extend tax cuts for Americans in lower tax brackets.

With details still forthcoming, U.S. Reps. Justin Amash, R-Cascade Township, and Bill Huizenga, R-Zeeland, find themselves awaiting both the new year and a final word on any deal.

Some still are holding out hope that Congress could use the first few days of the year to avoid the impacts of going over the cliff.

Earlier, New York Times, AP and other outlets reported Vice President Joe Biden and Senate Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., have agreed on a payroll tax cut extension for singles making $400,000 per year and couples making $450,000 annually.

Other details, provided largely by anonymous sources, include raising capital gains and dividend tax rates on incomes above that threshold to 20 percent from 15 percent.

A spokesman for Amash and Huizenga himself echoed similar sentiments about news that Senate leaders agreed to “turn off” $110 billion in automatic spending cuts that would take effect in the new year.

Republican Senate leaders reportedly are only willing to give Congress a three-month extension to mete out specific cuts, though Democrats want a year.

If true, West Michigan’s representatives in the House said there are multiple "red flags," and that they could not support any tax deal without adequate spending cuts.

“Justin can’t go along with that,” Amash spokesman Will Adams said, adding the congressman feels “turning off” the automatic cuts would amount to a spending increase.

“If the deal included more spending, that’s very unlikely to be a deal that Justin could support,” Adams said.

Even if approved by the Senate, such a deal would have to clear the House.

Huizenga predicted Republicans in charge of that chamber would amend a Senate deal, which ultimately would send any legislation back to the latter chamber.

That would, of course, likely go past the Jan. 1 deadline lawmakers had been working under, but Huizenga said a few extra days might be enough to stave off any impacts.

Huizenga said he could not support a tax deal without spending cuts at least equal to those that would be triggered by the sequester.

“I believe that this is not just about tax rates,” Huizenga said. “This is about spending. And we need to put our spending in line with our revenues.”